Singaporeans welcome new retirement age of 65

Many Singaporeans rejoiced at the government's recent announcement of lifting the retirement age to 65. -- ST PHOTO EVERYONE looks forward to retirement, but many Singaporeans still feel capable of working beyond the age of 62, so many rejoiced at the government's recent announcement of lifting the retirement age to 65. Ramesh Prakash Sharma, 66, is so good at his job that when he turned 62, he was given a promotion instead of being asked to retire. His company Qioptiq, an optics manufacturing company, made him a Technical Mentor to show younger employees the ropes. He says: 'I love my job. Optic is in my blood.' Under the new Retirement and Re-employment Act passed in Parliament on Tuesday, employees who turn 62 will now be given the option to work for another three years. The new re-employment law will be in place from January 2012 and will affect some 20,000 workers. An...